My Kh And Gh

[Twinklecaz]

Finally got an API KH and GH test kit to see exactly how hard my water is. There are my results of my tank water:

KH: 3-5 (started to turn colour on 3 but not significantly until 5)

GH:8/9

My questions are:

1. Does this make my water soft, hard, very hard - what?

2. Is my KH ok or does it mean my PH will mess around (doesn't so much now)?

3. Could my results have anything to do with why my Platys do so much better than my Honey Gouramis?

4. Are there any fish I should definitely stay away from with those results?

5. Like wise, are there any I'm stupid not to have?


Cheers

 

[drobbyb]

If we say the hardness scale goes Very hard > Moderately hard > Soft > Very soft, yours rates as soft with those results. A KH of 4 is what is said to be adequate to keeping your pH stable.

I would say stay away from African cichlids and other very hard water fish, but as far as anything else goes, they should acclimate to your conditions.

 

[Twinklecaz]

Really? That's great news thanks. I was worried my water was too hard for things like Neons, Gouramis and Corys. Fab, thank you

 

[PDSimon]

Hey caz, with the API test kit, rather than looking across the tube, look down it. It should noticibly change colour between one of the drops, not between a few. I was confused by this too, it may take a couple of goes.

I struggled doing the GH one, but it turned out to be 3KH and 6GH

 

[Twinklecaz]

Yeah I think my KH is acutally 3 then and my Gh is 8.

So basically my water is soft (ish) but my PH can't really be trusted ever due to my KH

Isn't is strange to have soft alkaline water? Usually it's soft acid or hard alkaline isn't it?

 

[PDSimon]

I wouldn't worry about the pH at all? the bogwood will bring it down...my pH is 6 in my tank! I will be adding co2 soon which will probably bring it down to 5 lol

It's not strange, my water has a ph of 7.5 with a KH of 3. It has more tendancy to be acidic but not always... if say you put a rock in there that changed the water chemistry it would shoot up instead of down

 

[Twinklecaz]

Lol so basically ignore all of it.


You know my bad luck? Go look at my new thread in the other forum. I think I'm cursed! lol.

 

[OldMan47]

You are at moderately hard water with a KH that indicates fairly low resistance to pH Changes. That means to me a chemistry that will easiest show changes in GH without any change in pH.

 

[Tolak]

Is this in degrees of hardness or ppm?

 

[Twinklecaz]

Hi, thanks guys. It's degrees I think. I'll look later but I think the PPM was the number underneath.

I guess this explains why my Pygmys do ok, coz my water isn't actually hard like I thought. So this water is ok for my Gouramis then? I know it's the top end of the PH they like (it's 7.5 quite steadily now - though I think Easy Carbo lowers it) but I guess my water chemistry isn't their problem then.

 

[RadaR]

Easycarbo shouldnt effect your pH. It's not the same as the effects of carbonic acid. After all, liquid carbon is glutaraldehyde

 

[Twinklecaz]

It can't be that then. My PH was hovering at about 6.8-7 for ages but now it's gone back to my tap PH (7.5) and the only thing that changed was a gave it a break from Easy Carbo. Must just be conincidence.

 

[PDSimon]

Its your bogwood caz it brings my pH down too or is it new?

 

[Twinklecaz]

No, one bit I've had in there since March (it flakes ) and the other about May.

Ohhh so now it's not new it's not lowering the PH anymore?

 

[waterdrop]

Yeah, it could be that. Wood doesn't always keep changing the water chemistry in the same way over time.

At KH=3 (degrees) you have a little more resistance to change than me, Robby and GVG, lol.

WD